Corbevax, Covid 19 vaccine of Biological E, is “safe and significantly more effective’‘ than repeating the initial vaccine regimen, according to a study conducted by AIG Hospitals, Hyderabad.

“Our aim was to determine how a different vaccine platform (protein-based) will impact the immune response especially in context of the Omicron variant,” D Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman, AIG Hospitals said. .

The study was conducted on 250 healthcare workers who had received two doses of Covishield as the primary vaccine regimen not more than 6 months ago.

Corbevax is an indigenously developed peptide-based vaccine which is different from the Viral vector (Covishield) or the inactivated vaccine (Covaxin).

“None of the 250 participants had any adverse events following the administration of Corbevax booster dose. This further cemented our belief that mixed vaccines are absolutely safe,’‘ Reddy said. 

Antibody response

The second aspect of the study was to measure the antibody response as well as the T-cell (memory cell) response at 30 days and then at 90 days to correctly estimate the overall protection against the circulating Omicron variant. When estimating the effectiveness of a vaccine, both the antibody response and T-cell (Memory cell) response are essential. “In our study, we compared the immune responses among those individuals who were given the same vaccine — Covishield (homologous group) — as a booster and those who were given Corbevax as a booster (heterologous group).  “While the homologous and heterologous groups showed increased S1/S2-spike protein IgG antibody level at 30 days, the heterologous group (Corbevax as a booster) showed higher levels of antibodies at both 30 days and 90 days,” Reddy said.

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